1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a technique for aligning light emitters directly to the connector portion of the connectorized emitter package, and, more particularly, to such a technique which uses a coherent fiber bundle to achieve alignment.
2. Description of the Prior Art
An essential requirement in optical comunication systems is that the communication fiber be aligned as closely as possible with the center of the light beam from the emitter. The emitters used in such systems are typically packaged light emitting diodes (LEDs) or laser diodes. The conventional alignment process involves coupling a connectorized fiber to the package containing the emitter and monitoring the optical output power through the fiber with a meter. The position of the emitter is then adjusted, using either a micromanipulator or a pair of set screws, to obtain maximum light throughput. U.S. Pat. No. 4,548,466 issued to D. S. Evans on Oct. 22, 1985 describes one such process.
The above-described process, although accurate in achieving alignment, is often very time-consuming and requires an operator to perform the procedure. Additionally, if the light from the emitter initially focused on the test fiber is severely off-axis, the power meter reading will be very low and may not even record a power level at all. This results in requiring additional manipulations to try to obtain maximum power, where the actual fault may lie in a defective emitter, thus adding even more time delay to the alignment process.
Thus, a need remains in the prior art for a better method of aligning optical fibers to emitters which is relatively simple, inexpensive, and efficient.